Graffiti calls for end to rhino horn use in Việt Nam

Twelve walls in Nguyễn Thái Bình Ward of District 1, HCM City, are being covered with rhino-themed graffiti to call for an end to the use of rhino horn in Việt Nam. — Photo vietnamnet.vn

HÀ NỘI — Twelve walls in Nguyễn Thái Bình Ward of District 1, HCM City, are being covered with rhino-themed graffiti to call for an end to the use of rhino horn in Việt Nam.

The event, taking place from January 9-15, is part of a rhino arts week which features street art and interactive activities to convey anti-rhino horn messages to the public.

Ten graffiti artists, including Trang Suby, Florian Nguyen and Danny Dao will also show off their skills in individual and mass performances over the course of the week, which is expected to attract 10,000 visitors.

The 12 walls will be kept intact after the week ends so as to encourage people to protect rhinos.

Statistics show that there are only 25,000 wild rhinos in the world at present, dropping by 95 per cent over the last 40 years.

South Africa is home to about 20,000 rhinos or 80 per cent of the global total. Up to 1,175 rhinos were poached there in 2015, down slightly from the record of 1,215 in 2014.

However, many experts believe that the real number of poached rhinos is much higher.

Poaching is attributable to the rising demand for rhino horn in some Asian countries, including Việt Nam, since many people in these nations believe that rhino horns can cure illnesses, which is refuted by science.

Conservationists warned that rhinos will become extinct within the next 10 years if poaching is not stopped.

The last Java rhino in Việt Nam was killed at Cát Tiên National Park in 2010. — VNS